


Family is Supposed to Stay Together

by Silverstar706



Category: Marvel (Movies)
Genre: Brainwashing, Don't worry there's happy bits, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Issues, Heimdal is a snitch, Psychological Trauma, Regret
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-04
Updated: 2014-10-06
Packaged: 2018-02-19 20:01:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 19,722
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2401133
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silverstar706/pseuds/Silverstar706
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Loki falls from the bi-frost he is rescued from Thanos by his true brothers and now they have to fight their way back to their own part of the galaxy but Lorelei is intent on destroying whatever pleasant future Loki might still have without really intending to at first (but she is cruel and still thinks it's great fun anyway).<br/></p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I realize now that I have been spelling Helbindi's (it is supposed to be Helblindi) name for the entire story but I don't think I can catch everything if I try to go back and change all of it and plus now I am used to it and think the proper spelling sounds weird.
> 
> Right now I am going to let you in on a little secret, for Helbindi's character I decided write with the idea that he has a certain mental 'disorder'. I actually based his personality on a person that I know who has this 'disorder'. If you can figure it out kudos to you because I'm not going to tell you what it is.
> 
> You absolutely have to see the artwork Sealcat did for my story: http://archiveofourown.org/collections/norsebigbang2014/works/2434862  
> If someone knows how to put direct links in here please let me know.

    Loki awoke in dark cave with his hands bound behind his back.  Hurt and betrayal flooded his mind and he came to the realization that no one cared about him, even Frigga was quick to abandon his side for his idiotic brother. When he let go and fell through the void he did so with the idea that no one would mourn him, that they would be happy to be rid of him. When he landed on the surface of this forsaken planet the greatest pain he felt was not caused by the bone crushing fall but from the emotional pain of being deserted by his own family.

  
    He could still hear the terrible screeching of the Chitauri when they found what was left of the clever mischief maker. As his eyes adjusted he realized that he was not alone, even in the almost complete absence of light he could make out two other figures; the figure furthest from him was fast asleep and snoring way too loudly for comfort. He also noticed that his bones had completely mended themselves and he could feel his hair brush against his shoulders, which were the only indications to how long he had been unconscious.

  
    A small movement caught the attention of the figure closest to him.

  
    “Hey, you’re awake” the soprano but noticeably male voice whispered “how are you feeling.”

  
    “Like I’d rather be dead.”

  
    “The feeling may be mutual right now but we aren’t, so the only thing we can do now is try to escape.”

  
    “I’ll just wait for them to kill me.”

  
    “I don’t want to be the bringer of bad news but they won’t; they will torture you then heal the wounds and wait for you to recover and then torture you again and cycle just goes on and on, if you’re really intent on killing yourself you’ll have to get out of here first.”

  
    Loki wasn’t sure that he could actually kill himself but he certainly didn’t want to spend the rest of eternity at the mercy of those vile creatures, if death comes after his escape or caused by it then so be it.

  
    “What’s your plan?”

  
    “Tell me your name first.”

  
    “Loki.”

  
    “I’m Helbindi and the one snoring is my brother Byleistr.”

  
    Loki angrily pushed away memories of Thor. He wasn’t even his brother, so why was Loki’s heart hurting so much?

  
    “And your plan?”

  
    “Well, there’s a guard who comes in here occasionally but he is too big for just me and Byleistr to overpower on our own, with you here, we’d stand a chance. After that we would be able to easily make our way out of the caves plus there are plenty of places to hide if a patrol comes by.”

  
    “I would suppose that you have the capability to untie us.”

  
    “That’s the really easy part.”

  
    “And if they catch us?”

  
    “Then we’ll force them to kill us instead of taking us prisoner again.”

  
    “Those are brave words, when do we start?”

  
    “If you think you’re up to it I’ll wake Byleistr and start untying us right now.”

  
    “Let’s do it.”

  
    Helbindi used his foot to nudge at Byleistr until he woke up.

  
    “Hey, what’s the deal?” a deeper and slightly ticked off voice whispered.

  
    “It’s about time we escape. Our cellmate woke up, his name is Loki and he’s agreed to help us.”

  
    “Well, it’s now or never because I don’t have the patience to wait any longer.”

  
    First the two scooted up back to back so that Helbindi could untie Byleistr.

  
    “Okay, I’m loose.”

  
    Loki noticed that it took longer for Byleistr to untie Helbindi although he wasn’t quite sure because it seemed as if time was not moving at all. The short time that it took Helbindi to untie Loki was pretty impressive especially since there was almost no light to see by. Right now time seemed more important and unbearable than ever.

  
    “How long was I out?”

  
    “They brought you in about a week ago” Helbindi responded.

  
    “How can you tell?”

  
    “They bring in a meal each day, well that is, if your definition of a meal is a bowl of slop.”

  
    Byleistr positioned himself on the left side of the metal door while Helbindi brought Loki with him to the right. They stood there like that for hours it seemed until finally they heard footsteps on the other side of the door.

  
    As the door opened a bright light turned on, Loki couldn’t see anything but he had a good idea of where the Chitauri was so he pounced. A little thrill jolted through his veins as his fingers connected with the flesh of the over-sized abomination. Helbindi had his hand over the creature’s mouth so it couldn’t call for help. The next thing that happened was a desperate struggle of trying to immobilize the Chitauri during which it was able to give Loki a nasty uppercut. Finally Byleistr got a hold on its head and jerked it to the side.

  
    Now that his eyes had adjusted Loki could tell that the monster was about a head taller than him. _“And yet in truth we are both monsters”_ his despairing brain supplied. But what startled him the most was the condition his cellmates were in. They were both badly beaten and bruised. Byleistr had a black eye and the edges of whip marks were visible on their shoulders where the ragged and bloody tunics didn’t quite cover. Aside from that horror, Helbindi was lean and reasonably shorter than Loki while Byleistr was more thickly built and a little taller. They both had green eyes and long ratty black hair. It took a moment for his brain to reassure him that it was just a coincidence and that lots of people have green eyes and black hair.

  
    “I can already taste freedom” Helbindi claimed hopefully.

  
    “What exactly does freedom taste like little brother?”

  
    “Sweet, like sugar.”

  
    “Well let’s not settle for the appetizer.”

  
    “Agreed.”

  
    At that moment Loki could feel the pain of being betrayed by his brother once again _“but he’s not your brother”_ his ever so helpful brain reminded him.

  
    They moved quietly through the tunnels and easily evaded all patrols. Eventually they stopped in a shadow at the edge of a large cavern with a few Chitauri bumbling around.

  
    “Byleistr” Helbindi whimpered as he pointed to one of the creatures “he has my bow.”

  
    “There’s nothing we can do about it, we just need to find a way around them.”

  
    There was a lot of noise as one of the patrols shuffled into the cave and the courage that Helbindi had kept up started to fade. He wrapped his arms around Byleistr and nestled into his neck.

  
    “I’m scared.”

  
    “It’s alright.”

  
    Now that he was more alert and stronger Loki could feel magic building in his veins with the desire to destroy these creatures that had caused his cellmates so much misery. The air around him crackled and sparked with electricity and the two brothers stepped out of what they assumed was the danger zone.

  
    The Chitauri were alerted by the noise but it didn’t do them much good as streaks of lighting snapped towards them. It was strange how they didn’t even screech in pain but simply dropped to the ground.

  
    “You’re a mage!” Helbindi gasped. “Nothing can stop us now!”

  
    Loki was waiting for the accustomed ridicule that was so common in Asgard so he was more than a little surprised at the actual response. Helbindi practically skipped forward to retrieve his bow and the quiver of arrows that had been lying on the floor.

  
    “You could have used that magic a little sooner” Byleistr lightly accused.

  
    “I have been using a spell to muffle our steps the entire time.”

  
    “Thank you.”

  
    “Hey, I don’t know what they did with our armor but there are some daggers here and, Byleistr, they got your greatsword” Helbindi yelled across the cavern.

  
    “You’re muffling that too, right?”

  
    “Yes” Loki chuckled.

  
    Byleistr proudly retrieved his greatsword and sheath.

  
    The daggers happened to be Loki’s, they were a set and they had been given to him by Thor. They all had emeralds embedded in the hilt, most of the daggers were small so they could be easily thrown but there was one that was much longer, meant for close combat. It hurt his already bleeding heart just to hold them but Loki knew that no matter how much Thor hated him he would always hold on to these gifts that reminded him of happier times.

  
    But there was still something nagging him and it grew once he got a closer look at the creatures. The bodies weren’t even burned that badly, as it turned out the spell hadn’t been that strong due to Loki’s weakened state. Most of the electricity had been redirected towards a (now completely fried) machine that was mounted on the creature’s back and snaked up to its head.

  
    Loki explained what he observed to Helbindi and Byleistr. “I can’t think straight right now, what do you make of this.”

  
    “The thing must have been some sort of personalized life support, not all creatures are meant to live in an oxygenated environment” Helbindi quickly responded.

  
    “We need to find a way out of here real soon, someone is going to show up eventually” the oldest pointed out.

  
    If Loki stood still, he could feel a breeze from somewhere outside and that gave him the courage to believe that he just might make it out alive.

  
    “I believe” Loki stated as he double checked the direction of the draft “that the exit is this way.”

  
    It didn’t take long before they were at the entrance but what they saw stopped them in their tracks. They were about halfway up the side of the mountain and when they looked down they could see hundreds of thousands of Chitauri. If they looked up they saw hundreds of massive ships and gigantic flying creatures. Around them stretched miles of barren land that hadn’t supported life in many centuries.

  
    “I think it’s a really bad idea to stand here and enjoy the view” Byleistr sarcastically pointed out as Helbindi cowered behind him. They hid from sight behind some jagged outcrops before he spoke again.

  
    “Loki, can you detect sources of powerful magic.”

  
    “I can, what do you need me to find?”

  
    Helbindi was truly terrified now and was tucked under Byleistr’s arm. The youngest didn’t say anything just sat there quietly trying to block out the world around him and find his happy place.

  
    “There’s this portal, our mother was studying it.” Loki noticed a darkening in his eyes that made his heart tighten “It has the capability of sending a person to another dimension but there’s more than one. If we can find a dimension where two portals are in the same place then we can pass through them back to our own but in a different part of the galaxy.”

  
    “That sounds like a good idea, certainly there has to be a dimension where some enthusiast has gathered together all of the portals.”

  
    “And even better; if we know where one of the portals in our own galaxy is, from there we might be able to get you home.”

  
    “What about your home?”

  
    “We can’t go back there, after the war our father banished us. We’ll just eke out a living on the first friendly planet we find.”

  
    “I don’t know if going back to my home would be the best idea either.”

  
    “You can stay with us if you want.”

  
    “Thank you… give me a moment to see if I can find this portal.”   

  
    Loki closed his eyes and focused his mind on feeling for the telltale tug of magic. He could feel something but there was no real way to tell if it was what they were looking for except to go and find it.

  
    “I can feel something in that direction” Thankfully the way that he was pointing was in the opposite direction of the massive Chitauri army.

  
    Helbindi mustered up all the courage he could and stood up tall, ready to face any danger that might lie ahead.

  
    Loki led them through about a mile of rocky terrain before they encountered a patrol and had to hide. To Loki’s discomfort the only rock nearby that was large enough to hide behind happened to be in the visual vicinity of a human skull. As they passed by it Loki looked back to make sure they were both still following and saw that Byleistr was actively putting himself between Helbindi and the skull so that he wouldn’t see it.

  
    Once the patrol had passed they continued their gloomy path to potential freedom.


	2. Chapter 2

    The cave that Loki led them to was dark so he used a light spell to see by but he wished he hadn’t, he was horrified by the blood and destruction that was everywhere. Their attention was drawn to an elegant pendant with a broken chain that lay in the middle of the cave. Helbindi fell to the floor in front of the gold and emerald pendant with tortured cry that sent a sharp pain straight to Loki’s heart. The youngest sobbed and cradled the pendant like it was the last reason he had to live. Byleistr was trying really hard not to cry and was just barely succeeding.  
  
    Loki didn’t need to be told what had happened, he got the story from the cave walls that were heavy with desperation and the spells that had been cast in its wake. It was an immensely sad tale but replete with courage and the undying love of a mother for her children.  
  
    Helbindi looked back at the other two with bleary eyes “it’s my fault; I wasn’t able to protect her.”  
  
    “Don’t you dare say that” Loki snapped before Byleistr could say anything although he didn’t have much to say; he was too overcome with grief “she was protecting you; she gave you another chance to live so don’t squander it by spending that life in sorrow and regret.”  
  
    “But she’s gone and I will never see her again.”  
  
    Loki knelt down next to him “You haven’t lost her because she will always be with you, in your heart and she will always be watching over you.”  
  
    “She is?” his voice sounded so tiny like a hopeful child.  
  
    “Yes, and she would want her brave little warrior to fight on.”  
  
    Helbindi wrapped his arms around Loki like the loving little brother he never had, it was mere seconds before Byleistr joined in and turned it into a group hug.  
  
.    .    .  
  
      The group cooked up and ate some frozen meat in silence before they decided to spend the night in one of the caverns that was further in and far away from where their mother had died. Helbindi was unable to sleep for a long time, not that this wasn’t uncommon for him but it meant that he had a painfully long time to think about everything.  At some point in the middle of the night he finally did fall asleep and had a dream where he was being chased by Chitauri and another really weird one where he picked up a cat and it turned into a doorknob.  
  
    In the morning Byleistr made a list of everything they would need and what each person needed to carry to distribute the weight evenly. Loki and Byleistr tried to keep their minds off of what had happened the previous day by discussing what was needed the most and what could be left behind. The cave was well stocked; there was suitable clothes for any weather, tents, lightweight cooking utensils, and plenty of nonperishable food so it was fairly easy to get everything they needed.  
  
    Helbindi spent most of the morning hiding in his little temple of temporary depression also known as his fur, pillow, and bean bag fort. After a while he went to get the stuff that he couldn’t bear to leave behind and secretly added it to the stuff that he would carry.  
  
    Loki took a moment to critically inspect the way these two acted together (mostly to keep him distracted). They were truly the embodiment of how brothers were supposed to be. They trusted each other with every fiber of their being and they weren’t even the tiniest bit reluctant to support and comfort each other.  
  
    Byleistr did everything he could to protect his little brother from the horrors of reality and when he couldn’t he held him close and told him that everything would be okay. He was strong enough to ford the way into unknown and dangerous territory while making sure Helbindi didn’t stray too far behind. It was not uncommon that he held back his emotions so the he wouldn’t scare Helbindi.  
  
    Helbindi looked upon his older brother with the adoration of a pupil striving to learn everything his teacher has to know while completely ignoring the fact that he is in a shadow. He didn’t resent that his brother was better; he followed along trusting the footsteps laid before him with a gleeful eagerness.  
  
   _“Maybe if Thor and me had been more like these two then things would have happened differently and they would still be together right now.”_  
  
    But Loki didn’t see that Helbindi had started to adore him as well. He beheld Loki’s magic with awe and from the moment he found out about it he desired to learn everything he could if Loki was only willing to teach him but he didn’t know how to ask.  
  
    Loki noticed a few of the other things about Helbindi did like the way he would incessantly tap on stuff. When he talked he was usually louder than what most people would consider polite and sometimes he would quietly repeat words or entire sentences over and over for no reason.  
  
    Eventually they had everything they needed and Byleistr said that it was time to go.  
  
    It didn’t take long before the stone portal was up and running. Byleistr flipped through different dimensions with a handheld device for about five minutes before he found what he was looking for.  
  
    “I believe that I have found a dimension where there are two portals on the same planet, they aren’t very close together and it’s a little cold there but it’ll have to do.”  
  
    Each of them got some warmer clothes and extra furs before they left.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    It was two days into the journey before anyone even started talking about anything that wasn’t absolutely necessary. Byleistr suggested to Loki that he take Helbindi on ‘an adventure’ to cheer him up some.  
  
     Loki decided to go out hunting to see how well Helbindi could use his bow and they soon found a pack of creatures that looked like elk with thick downy feathers and a bird’s skull. They were beside a fast moving river and there was a small space between it and a cliff that they had to walk on to get close enough to the herbivores. Loki was leading the way when he heard a terrified shriek from behind him; Helbindi had slipped on the snow and fallen into the river.  
  
    Loki sped down the bank and through the trees so quickly that he nearly fell in himself. Helbindi flailed in the current until he regained his bearings and started swimming towards the shore with a focused determination. With the raging cold water making it difficult to see he could only hope that he was swimming to the right shore. After long tenuous moments he was finally able to latch onto a rock and started hauling himself up.  
  
    Loki had caught up and now grabbed the back of his fur coat to help him to solid ground. Helbindi’s face was turned down and obscured by his wet hair. Loki could only see his nose and it was blue, he thought it was frostbite. If the river was cold enough to do that much damage in such a short amount of time then he was in grave danger. Loki lifted his face up and moved his hair out of the way to see just how much damage had been caused.  
  
    He froze at what he saw because it wasn’t frostbite; Helbindi’s whole face was blue, covered in little lines and his eyes were red. Loki just sat there in shock and stared at him.  
  
    “Don’t look at me like that!” Helbindi screeched “I’m not a monster!”  
  
    He grabbed Loki’s hand and shoved it away only to find that it had also turned blue from contact with his skin. He ran… tried to run from his reality, his heritage and his reputation.  
  
 _“I did it again, how can I keep claiming that I’m not a monster I keep hurting people.”_  
  
    Loki sat there looking at his hand as it turned back to its normal color _“I’m not alone.”_  
  
.    .    .  
  
Byleistr was quite alarmed when his little brother ran into his arms crying, wet, and in his Jotun form.  
  
    “What happed?”  
  
    “I hurt him, I hurt Loki.”  
  
    “Helbindi it’s okay, even if he can’t use magic to heal himself then I can fix it.”  
  
    “That’s not the point, he was trying to help me and I hurt him! He must think that I’m a monster.”  
  
    “Don’t you say that, you are a hyperactive, oblivious pain in the ass but you are not a monster.”  
  
    “Haha… no, stop that, I’m upset don’t make me laugh.”  
  
    Byleistr pulled him close to the fire to try and dry him off as there wasn’t anything suitable for him to change into. He wasn’t exactly expecting someone to fall into the river.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Loki had taken his time walking back to camp, he would have gone slower but the setting sun convinced him otherwise. He needed to sort everything out in his head and figure out what he was going to say. By the time he came to the edge of camp everything was still a jumbled mess in his head. He saw that Helbindi was huddled close to the fire.  
  
     “Helbindi?” he spoke so quietly that he wasn’t entirely sure he would be heard.  
  
    “I’m really sorry, are you alright?”  
  
    “I am” Loki noticed that Helbindi was still wet and used a simple spell to dry him off.  
  
    “Thank you.”  
  
     “There’s something that I need to show you.”  
  
    “What is it?”  
  
    “The reason why you didn’t hurt me.”  
  
    “Huh?”  
  
    Loki knelt down next to the fire and reached out to touch the exposed skin on Helbindi’s face. He watched in wonder as the blue coloring began at Loki’s fingertips, snaked its way up his arm and swept over his face leaving those telltale red eyes in its wake.  
  
    Helbindi had a habit of saying the first thing that popped into his head without going over the details too much and if it wasn’t for the fact that his mouth couldn’t keep up with his brain he would have said everything that went through his head. At the moment his mind connected together all of their similarities and reasoned that there could be no other explanation because _‘no way, he has to be my long lost brother, I love you bro, wait I have to say something out loud.'_ “Snowflake?”  
  
    “What?”  
  
  _‘Oh right I need to explain myself.’_  
  
    “You’re my lost brother aren’t you? Mother always called you snowflake because you were kidnapped before the naming ceremony and that was all she had to call you.”  
  
    “How can you be so sure?”  
  
    ‘Uh I think I’m sure, I am sure right? Quick go over the facts! Green eyes, black hair, slim face, obviously half frost giant, I mean really that doesn’t happen very often that should honestly be enough proof in itself, oh! He would have to have been adopted.’  
  
    “Can’t you see it, the resemblance is uncanny. You are adopted aren’t you?”  
  
    “I am, though I did not know until recently.”  
  
  _‘Well see I am obviously right, there can be no denying it.’_  
  
    “It’s good to have you back” Byleistr had apparently been standing behind them the entire time. “I only wish you had been able to see your mother.”  
  
    Loki wasn’t sure he could believe it; he finally had a family he could count on. All those years of mocking and torment were now at an end and his life was truly beginning anew. He didn’t need Balder or Bragi, he was even glad to have Thor gone. Frigga and Odin were probably, no… definitely relieved to be rid of their adopted burden of a son. Everything was almost perfect. If only his true mother was still alive; he didn’t even get the chance to meet her. He didn’t know what he was missing but he knew that he should have had the right to at least know what she looked like.  
  
    “We should probably go to sleep now; it’s getting a little dark” Helbindi commented.  
  
    “By ‘a little dark’ do you mean pitch black except for the fire?”  
  
    Byleistr’s joke was met with laughter, and it sounded exactly like freedom to him.


	3. Chapter 3

_Byleistr was just barely able to look over the table to try and see what his mother was working on._

  
_“What is my little darling doing over here, I thought you were playing with your friends.”_  
  
_“They’re too big and push me around. I wanted to see what you were doing.”_  
  
_“I was just making some blankets for your baby brother”_  
  
_“It must be difficult for you to watch him and work at the same time. Could I play with him while you do that?”_  
  
_“You can but be careful he is still very small.”_  
  
_“Don’t worry I will.”_  
  
_His little brother was sitting comfortably in a makeshift blanket on the chair next to Farbauti. Byleistr picked up the bundle and the little one grabbed his hair with chubby little hands._  
  
_“Good morning little Snowflake do you want to play with your big brother.”_  
  
_Little Snowflake squealed delightedly in response._  
  
_“I’ll take that as a yes. Would you like to go to mother’s garden since the frost flowers are in bloom?”_  
  
_Snowflake cooed and then promptly jerked on Byleistr’s hair._  
  
_“Ow! You are going to be a mischievous little brat I can tell already.”_  
  
_“Byleistr, be sure to come back before sundown.”_  
  
_“Don’t worry mother I am very responsible.”_  
  
_Byleistr padded through huge hallways of ice and navigated to the garden with ease. There was a light dusting of snow on every surface available and Byleistr sat down right in the middle of it with Snowflake in his lap. He quickly procured a frost flower and offered it to the exited infant who nabbed it and started chewing on the stem._  
  
        Byleistr suddenly woke up to flames and the sound of his brothers yelling, one of their voices was suddenly cut out short. The oldest grabbed his greatsword and shoved his way out of the scorching tent just as a primitive arrow pierced the fabric and embedded itself in the ground where he had been sleeping only moments before.  
  
    They were surrounded on all sides by territorial natives. They were certainly humanoid-like but they were covered in thick white fur, had ears like a cat and sported white horns that curved up from their foreheads. One of them had a torch which had clearly been used to set fire to their tents, another particularly burly looking creature had knocked Loki unconscious with a wooden club while the trickster had been distracted. A little ways off stood Helbindi who was shooting them down one by one with his bow. Once the blood had stopped pounding in his ears Byleistr could hear the catlike snarling intermixed with clicking noises.  
  
    Byleistr stood protectively beside Loki’s inert form and stopped several intruders, including Loki’s attacker and the one with the torch, before long one screeched a signal and they began to retreat. Byleistr and Helbindi quickly went about putting out the fires by covering them in snow.  
  
     Once the fires were out Helbindi grabbed the dropped torch and they both tried to bring Loki back to consciousness. He was still breathing but refused to wake up. Byleistr was very concerned about the massive bump on his brother’s head that was still getting larger and tried to cool it down with some snow.  
  
    For the rest of the night they took turns keeping watch.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    When Loki’s eyes finally fluttered open any thoughts that may have entered his brain were silenced by an insufferable migraine. He stiffly threw the fur blankets off and pressed his hands against his skull in a pitiful attempt to quell the pounding in his head. One of his hands moved forward and encountered a swollen bump on his head.  
  
    “Hey Loki, you’re awake” Helbindi whispered.  
  
    Loki hadn’t noticed his little brother open the front of the tent at first but was grateful that this brother at least had the sense to be quiet. Suddenly his headache got worse as he tried to push away memories of the loud and boisterous Thor.  
  
    “Byleistr got you something to help with your headache.”  
  
    Helbindi pulled Loki’s hands away from his head and put some sort of blue and white speckled berries that were the size of marbles in them.  
  
    “So this is what it’s like to have brothers that care about your well-being.”  
  
    “Get used to it.”  
  
    “Thank you.”  
  
    Helbindi started to leave but stopped halfway through the entrance and turned back.  
  
    “I don’t know what it was like where you grew up but I do know that you deserve to be loved and as your brothers, Byleistr and I will give you no less than what you deserve.”  
  
    It’s funny knowing that someone loves you, that you love them back and you would do anything to protect them. It was that moment that Loki had a purpose in life, and in that same moment he realized that now he had something to lose.  
  
    After a while Byleistr entered the tent.  
  
     “Hey just so you know, Helbindi can get really annoying at times as in right now he’s distracted from working by chasing some squirrel looking thing.”  
  
    “Putting up with you two is far easier than dealing with Thor” Loki laughed.  
  
    “You know him?”  
  
    “So you know about him and not me, Thor is my adoptive brother.”  
  
    Byleistr took a moment to think of his reply so he wouldn’t say anything stupid “In my defense it is really hard not to notice him he’s ah, well, loud. When we were on Vanaheim we saw him, apparently he knew this one guy named Hogun.”  
  
    “Hogun is one of the Warriors Three.”  
  
    “Who are the other two?”  
  
    “Fandral and Volstagg and they are some of Thor’s best friends along with Lady Sif, they all fight together and I hardly ever went with them, not out of lack of want but lack of invitation.”  
  
    “Is Sif pretty?”  
  
    “Don’t care, don’t like her.”  
  
    “Pffft she’s probably ugly.”  
  
    “Why do you say that?”  
  
    “Have you looked in the mirror lately, you could have any pretty girl you want.”  
  
    “Looks aren’t everything.”  
  
    “Well I guess if they were Thor would have the throne already except he doesn’t have a brain.”  
  
    “How did you find that out already?”  
  
    “I wanted to look smart in front of him so I tried to have an intelligent conversation with him, apparently he doesn’t do intelligent and by that I mean he didn’t understand anything I said.”  
  
    “That sounds pretty typical.”  
  
    “Haha.”  
  
    “While we are on the subject of family and friends, do I have any other relatives I don’t know about?”  
  
    “Oh yea lots, but we haven’t seen any of them in a while, well except Jerimiah; only friends and family are allowed to call him Jerry.”  
  
    “Where did his parents come up with that name?”  
  
    “It’s a Midgard name.”  
  
    “What is he like?”  
  
    “He is a really big guy and he gets it from his dad. If you saw him at the end of a road I can just about guarantee that you would think twice about going that way. He also has a hodgepodge of tattoos all up his right arm. Well not exactly tattoos as such but there’s this technique where a cut is made into the skin and charcoal or something else black is rubbed into the wound.”  
  
    “That sounds a little terrifying.”  
  
“Actually once you get to know him he is a complete goofball and that’s obviously the best part.”  
  
    “Well actually I was talking that charcoal tattoo thing; you can get an infection from something like that.”  
  
    “Oh okay (Chuckle, Snicker)”  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Loki regretted that the only way to get to their destination seemed to be over this barren mountain. The wind was bitterly cold and the fur they wore seemed to make little difference.  
  
    “Guys” Byleistr sighed from behind them “we are going to have to shift over if we want make it over this mountain alive.”  
  
    Helbindi barley showed his panic but it was it was extremely obvious to Loki “you mean change over to our Jotun forms.”  
  
    “Yes”  
  
    “I don’t want to do that” and he started walking again.  
  
    Loki understood why he felt that way, he was just starting to realize that his heritage didn’t define who he was, only just. It was like an idea that he knew he should believe even if it was just to make him happier but it had already become an instinct to react with revulsion to frost giants because of the way he was raised and it was hard to simply get rid of something like that.  
  
    “Helbindi” The oldest continued “Monster is a very ambiguous term and as the centuries have gone by it has lost all meaning. Other people may use it freely but that doesn’t mean you should define yourself as such.  
  
     “Your skin color does not define who you are” Loki added, he knew the words to be true but his heart wasn’t in them.  
  
    Helbindi was still walking and had gotten ahead of them. Loki sighed as he let his Jotun half take over. He reached forward and grabbed his little brother’s hand and red eyes turned back to meet his.  
  
    “It does say something about us though.” Loki looked over at the youngest expectantly.  
  
    Helbindi plastered on a goofy grin “That we like ice-cream? Ha Ha” and effectively initiated an instant giggle fest.  
  
    “It says that we’re brothers you silly thing.”  
  
    “I wonder who invented ice cream, I’d like to give them a kiss”  
  
    “He was an elf” The oldest interjected “and I don’t think he’d mind that given that there are more gays in Alfheim than all the other realms combined.”  
  
    After everything that they had been through Loki still couldn’t understand how the other two could stay so positive, as long as his Mother or his heritage didn’t come up Helbindi was the most cheery person in all the nine realms. He went about almost everything with a childish joy, it was as if he just refused to grow up because he thought it would make life easier and more fun. Byleistr was happy with still being alive and made the most of every minute by only sleeping as much as necessary but above all he was strong enough to put everything bad that had happened behind him, he learned to just live with it without truly acknowledging it.


	4. Chapter 4

“Look at those fluffy little bastards, we should kill them all for what they did” Loki growled as he glared at the village of natives.

“Loki, no” Helbindi grabbed his arm to prevent him from standing “they were just trying to protect their home from what they thought were invaders and if you attack them you’ll just prove it to them.”

“They tried to kill us.”

“They only did it to protect their families, are you willing to kill mothers and fathers while their children watch just to get your revenge, you aren’t the only person out there with feelings. You told me that I am not a monster just because I am half Jotun, well neither are these people. Just like any other family they eat together, mourn their fallen, hunt to feed their children, they play, they laugh, and they take care of their elders. Heck they even try to woo pretty girls; look at that one, she is so out of his league. Sometimes you just have to forgive and forget or your pain will just lead to more and help no one.”

Loki felt like he couldn’t breathe, Helbindi and Byleistr didn’t have a clue how their own brother tried to destroy this very same thing a thousand times over. Once they found out they would surely disown him and he would be alone in the universe. Destroying a race is one thing but acknowledging that their individual lives were so much like his own, it was heartbreaking. Maybe he wasn’t a monster because of his heritage but he had become one. Perhaps he could forgive Odin, he was right for condemning his adoptive son.

Helbindi prodded Loki till he was brought back to reality. “Let’s wait for Byleistr and then go around to the entrance so we don’t startle them.”

“Why, are you trying to get yourself killed?”

“I am trying to make peace with them.”

“They won’t understand you.”

“All I really have to do is make them understand that we mean them no harm.”

“And how will you do that?”

“It’s called a peace offering, you aren’t used to making friends with people at all are you?”

“It is far easier to simply manipulate them into doing what I want.”

“And I’m sure you are good at it but you should probably just leave this to me for now.”

Loki simply sighed in resignation.

It took a little while for Byleistr to show up but once he did he agreed that it would be a good idea to make peace with the natives and was about to take them to the main entrance until Helbindi pulled some sort of intricate carving on a flat strip of bone out of his pack.

“Helbindi why did you bring that with you?”

“It’s important to me and took a long time to make, besides I’m getting rid of it now anyway.”

“How much more of your artwork did you bring?”

“Why should it matter, I’m the one carrying it and if it becomes too cumbersome then I’ll leave it.” The last part was said quietly like Helbindi knew he was lying and was worried that if he spoke too loudly his brother would know it too.

As they walked around to the front of the village Helbindi kept looking nervously over at Byleistr like he thought his big brother might burn all of his art in the middle of the night. When they did make it to the entrance one of the villagers took off in the direction of a very large stone building and in actuality all of the houses were made of stone. Now that Loki wasn’t glowering at the natives anymore he had the chance to admire how well built their homes were. Not only that but getting the rock out of the ground in the first place must have been a nightmare however, stone was an excellent insulator and Loki could see how it would be worth it.

At some point while he was looking around the chief had arrived. Loki concluded that he was probably much older than the ones he had already seen judging by the grayness of his whiskers. Helbindi stepped forward and put his hands out with palms facing up to show that he was not holding any weapons, just the bone carving which he then put forward a little bit more to indicate that it was a gift. The chief accepted and turned it around as he examined the carvings. He then walked over to a nearby stone table, took a knife out of his fur robes and set it on the table.

“I assume he wants us to do the same with our weapons” Helbindi suggested.

The chief stepped back as they laid all of their weapons on the table and then gestured for them to follow.

. . .

“Well that was confusing” Loki pointed out as they left the village.

“That was obviously some sort of ritual, they may have been asking their gods to forgive us for our sins so that we could be welcomed as friends” Helbindi offered.

“I am just grateful for the supplies” and from then on Byleistr was silent.

“I am starting to get the idea that religion is stupid and a waste of time.”

“Well Loki, think of it this way, what exactly is the meaning of life.”

Loki thought about this for a long time but couldn’t come up with anything “This doesn’t sound at all relevant but I give up, what is it?”

“There isn’t any single answer but if you think that life has no meaning then why would you have any reason to be a good person. But religion gives people a reason to believe that they will be rewarded in life and death for being good. Because of their religion they believe that they were put here for a reason.”

“What do you think the meaning of life is?”

“I think that life is meaningless, unless you are happy.”

“Are you?”

“I don’t know, I miss mother but I am glad that you are here. I guess I just need some time to figure it out”

“You never did tell me her name.”

“Farbauti.”

“What was she like?”

Helbindi thought for a while about how he could describe her, he had never really been good at it but for his brother he would try his best. “She knew exactly how to deal with every situation, she never panicked even when someone got hurt; in fact there were times when she got hurt and was the one calming down everyone else. She was insanely smart, her memory was perfect and she could fluently speak eleven different languages including Japanese and two entirely different sign languages. She taught us so many different things and lots of them were really fun like lighting steel wool on fire or playing with gallium. She always said that ‘you should never truly grow up because if you do you lose a piece of yourself’ or something along those lines.

“Did she ever talk about me?”

“Well, I remember that she spent a long time looking for you but then all of a sudden she stopped, just came home one day and didn’t say anything about it again.”

“Do you think she found out?”

“You mean about who took you.”

“Yes.”

“It’s a possibility.”

“I was taken in an invasion did she ever talk about it.”

“Mother talked a lot about how beautiful Jotunheim used to be, about the ice carvings, the city, the palace. The Frost giants used to be an impressive race until the invasion. When the Æsir attacked they absolutely destroyed everything and everyone in their path. And then they took the Casket of Ancient Winters and that was the only hope the Jotuns had to rebuild. The chaos didn’t stop when they surrendered, after the Æsir left it took a long time for families to find each other if they were lucky. It took weeks to find out who was dead and what the final death toll actually was. Jotunheim was never the same; Mother said that it was depressing to see them like that knowing that there was nothing she could do. When she finally came to the conclusion that you were no longer on the planet she left in the hopes that you had been brought back to Asgard and she could find you.”

“How exactly did she lose track of me anyway.”

“She never told me.”

Neither of them noticed the way Byleistr froze in his tracks for a few seconds and then started to fall behind.

. . .

When they did finally reach the other portal Loki realized just how different it was from the other one. One of the differences was that it had lost its charge and was incapable of starting up.

“This is bad this is very bad” Byleistr mumbled to himself as he walked around it.

Helbindi just looked over at Loki expectantly until stepped forward to place his hand on the device and used magic to charge it back up.

“Okay never mind” Byleistr said as the portal started up normally.


	5. Chapter 5

    The other side of the portal was hidden within a cave and it took some navigating to find the entrance. And once they did all Loki could think about was how beautiful the forest was.  
  
    “Okay now we need to find the closest ITC, which stands for interplanetary travel center.” Byleistr explained.  
  
    “Which planet are we on?” Loki asked quietly as if he might sound stupid if he said it any louder.  
  
    At which point Byleistr pulled out an electronic device and tapped on it with his finger.  
  
   “We are on Earth, Adirondack Mountains, New York and the closest ITC is in Syracuse which is not terribly far from here.”  
  
   “Is interplanetary travel that common?”  
  
   “Yea, but it is necessary to cloak your ship before you enter the atmosphere because the majority of the people living here aren’t supposed to know about space travel; you can get heavily fined if you don’t.”  
  
    At that very moment Loki was startled by some really creepy high pitched laughter and Helbindi pulled something out of his bag “Sorry that was my cell phone, I need to answer this.”  
  
    “That’s the ringtone he set for Jerimiah, I didn’t know he was on this planet.” Byleistr explained  
  
    Helbindi opened up the ‘cell phone’ and put up to his ear “This is Denver alcoholic services, how may I help you” Basically everyone started chuckling at that point “you already know that I’m full of it… yea… yea… where are you?... really?... we’re in New York too… the state not the city… can you come pick us up?... I’ll activate the GPS navigator on my phone… Okay, thanks… don’t worry I’ll tell you everything once you get here… byyyyye.”  
  
    Byleistr looked over at the setting sun with a grim look on his face “It’s almost night; that’s when everything evil and dangerous comes out.”  
  
    Helbindi started to make his way over to Byleistr for whatever little safety there might be.  
  
    “You mean everything that isn’t already out” Loki corrected.  
  
    “Precisely why we need to start moving.”  
  
    They trudged down the mountain slope for what felt like hours and it was not uncommon for someone to trip over something in the dark. All of a sudden Byleistr held up hand indicating for them to stop unfortunately Helbindi didn’t see it and ran straight into him.  
  
    “What?”  
  
    “Do you hear that?”  
  
    “I don’t hear a damn thing”  
  
    “No crickets, no bats, no wind, no nothing, just pure silence.”  
  
    Then a high pitched screech sounded throughout the forest; it seemed like it was coming from all sides. The three brothers pressed their hands against their ears in the hopes to block out some of the noise. Loki was then attacked from behind, he tried to dislodge the creature but it was too strong. It’s long, thick claws tore at his scalp as teeth dug into his right arm and wrenched it out of place. The beast shoved him over, knocked Helbindi out of the way and grabbed Byleistr. Blood started flowing down Loki’s face and into his eyes. He could hear his older brother screaming in pure agony and it gave him the strength to fight through the pain and cast a spell to light up the forest in the hopes Helbindi could see it and kill it. He heard an arrow whisk through the air and the creature instantly started screeching in pain and it sounded like it ran off.  
  
    “Loki, are you okay?!”  
  
    “I’m fine, get to Byleistr!”  
  
    “I can’t see him!”  
  
     Loki immediately intensified the spell and started making his way over.  
  
    “Loki!” Helbindi desperately yelled as he grabbed Loki’s arm and guided him over “I, I think he’s dying. Please help him, I can’t lose someone else.”  
  
    Loki knelt down beside the still form of his oldest brother and he could feel his life fading away. Loki put his hands above Byleistr’s chest and started to pump as much healing magic into him as possible but it wasn’t long before Loki could feel himself getting dizzy. Just before Byleistr was stabilized Loki was about to black out even though he tried to stay awake and knew that he had to. Loki started panicking because might not be able to heal his brother enough before he passed out. The last thing he remembered was Helbindi calling his name.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    “Jerry, we work so well together.” Lorelei pleaded from the sidewalk.  
  
    “Not if it means endangering my family.” Jerimiah yelled from the other side of his truck as he opened up the toolbox.  
  
    “Family?! Why do you think they care about you at all? Family doesn’t mean a thing. An abstract thing like the idea of being family won’t stop them from beating you.”  
  
    Jerimiah walked over to the other side of the truck to put the medical kit in the back seat “My father was an angry drunk and I know that very well but that did not stop me from loving him when he was sober.”  
  
    “And is that love greater than the love you have for me.”  
  
    Jerimiah looked over to his teenage daughter standing at the front door or at least at her face, her black clothes and hair made it hard to see her in the dark. Jerimiah knew he had to do something not only because he knew that Shanaya didn’t like Lorelei but because her negativity was bringing him and his daughter down.  
  
    “Lorelei I can’t stand this anymore, I’m sorry but I can’t live like this.”  
  
    “What, what do you mean?!”  
  
    “I hope you find someone who makes you happy.”  
  
    “No, you can’t just leave me like this!”  
  
    “I wish I didn’t have to hurt you like this.”  
  
    “Dad, just tell her to leave already!” Shanaya yelled from the porch.  
  
    “Shay, please at least try to be nice.”  
  
    Lorelei stiffened “no she’s right, it’s time for me to go home and stay there. I’ll book the next available plane flight.”  
  
    “Thank you, I don’t think I could handle forcing you to leave.”  
  
    Jerimiah watched as she got into her car and drove away.  
  
    “Dad, can I come with you?”  
  
    “I’m sorry Shay but you need to get some sleep for school tomorrow.”  
  
    “Please, I want to see them.”  
  
    “They will be here when you get home from school, besides they will probably wind up falling asleep in the car.”  
  
    “Okay, but if they try to leave before I get home you have tie them up.”  
  
    “Ha ha ha, okay.”  
  
    “(Chuckle, snicker)”  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Lorelei was not going to let Jerimiah off the hook for this _“I am done letting people hurt me. He cares about his family so much fine, they will be the ones to suffer and he’ll never even know it was me. It’s a good thing I traced that call.”_ She grabbed her phone and dialed up the creature containment center, after all those little monkeys would do whatever their boss told them without question.  
  
    “I want you to take that Jersey Devil that we caught and let it loose at the coordinates that I am about to send you.”  
  
    She then hung up and sent the coordinates to them in code and while she was at it she finally called back the mysterious Thanos. According to him the first part of the plan was already complete and this thing called the Tesseract was already on Earth but he needed an expert in deceit to carry out the rest of the mission _“If this guy is all he was cracked then maybe it would be fun to cause some chaos in that poor bugger’s likeness, what was his name again, didn’t it start with an L? Whatever it’s not important.”_  
  
.    .    .  
  
    When Loki woke up he was in soft bed with white sheets and the room had white walls and was insanely clean, but still managed to smell funny. When he looked down his first thought was _“by the Norns what am I wearing, is this dress?!”_ He hopped out of bed and opened the door; it led to a hallway that had lots of other doors (some of which were open) that he assumed led to rooms just like the one he was in. As he started walking out of the room he was startled by a voice.  
  
    “You probably shouldn’t be moving around right now.”  
  
    Loki turned around to find that a woman wearing blue had just come around the corner “why?”  
  
    “You have a lot of pain killers in your system right now and if you accidently hurt yourself you won’t even notice.”  
  
    She promptly led Loki back into the room and insisted that he lay back down.  
  
    “Who are you?” at this point in time Loki had nothing but questions and he didn’t like not knowing things.  
  
    “My name is Heidi and I’m your nurse until I say you are well enough to go home.”  
  
 “Where am I and how long have I been here?”  
  
    “You’re in a hospital and you’ve been here since the night before last when you and you’re brothers were attacked by a bear.”  
  
    “Are they okay?”  
  
    Loki wondered why she said it was a bear when it most certainly was not but most of all he was terrified that Byleistr might not have made it. He could feel his chest tighten up when she didn’t respond right away.  
  
    “We can’t be sure about Byleistr, he hasn’t quite stabilized yet. One of the doctors had to stay with him through the night to keep an eye on him but Helbindi is completely fine, there wasn’t even a single scratch on him.”  
  
    “How did we get here?”  
  
    “You’re cousin Jerimiah found you, and its good thing he knows quite a bit about medicine, otherwise I don’t think Byleistr would have made it this far.”  
  
     Loki knew it; he knew that he had failed. If he had been stronger he could have healed Byleistr more and they wouldn’t be here right now. He absolutely hated himself for his failure and wanted to crawl into a hole and die.  
  
    “Can I at least go see him?”  
  
    “I’m sorry not right now, he is still in intensive care and no one except the doctors is allowed in there.”  
  
    “I can be careful.”  
  
    “You’ll have to do that later, if he happens to make it. I’m not going to sugarcoat it because he’s in really bad shape. You shouldn’t hold out too much hope, if he lives through this it will be just short of a miracle.”  
  
    Loki was seething inside; this woman was the only thing stopping him from saving his brother. It was her fault that he had to sit here and suffer while there was still something he could do about it.  
  
    “Can I at least have my clothes back” he snarled.  
  
    “Your clothes were in pretty bad shape but Jerimiah brought a shirt and a pair of jeans that he figured would fit you, they are on that chair.” She pointed to a chair that was next to his bed there were a pair of shoes, jeans and a green t-shirt. “Helbindi said he would come see you once visiting hours open up.”  
  
    Loki glared at the back of her head as she left the room and closed the door. His emotions were ripping him apart from the inside and after a few minutes of trying to hold back the flood he finally gave in.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    “You're gonna lose” Coulson announced in a weak voice.  
  
    “Am I?”  
  
    “It's in your nature.”  
  
    “Your heroes are scattered, your floating fortress falls from the sky...where is my disadvantage?”  
  
    “Your mind is too far gone to focus on anything but your pain.”  
     
    “What would you know? You’re not Sherlock.”  
  
    “And you’re not really Loki are you?”  
  
    Coulson blasted Lorelei with the prototype right after she let down her disguise.  
  
    “So that’s what it does.”


	6. Chapter 6

    Shanaya on the edge of her nerves after she heard that Byleistr had been taken to the hospital. Helbindi’s description of the creature made it sound like it could have been a Jersey Devil. Shay had a hunch that Lorelei might be behind it, she never gives up so easily unless she has a plan for revenge. And the fact that they had been attacked right after the incident made it even more suspicious.  
Unfortunately she couldn’t tell her dad since he wouldn’t believe her but she was taking precautions just in case she was the next target. That morning she grabbed the tallest boots she had and the longest knife that could fit inside without being seen. Knives aren’t allowed in school but she had to have some way to defend herself, right? Then why was she feeling so guilty and nervous?  
  
    “Shay, answer the question” she didn’t even realize that the teacher was talking.  
  
_“Time to improvise”_  
  
    “I’m sorry I’m confused, I don’t think I heard the question correctly.”  
  
    “How did Einstein prove the existence of atoms?”  
  
    “Oh okay, well he observed that grains of pollen when viewed under a microscope would move on their own accord even though the water it was sitting in did not move which proved that the water was made up of tiny little particles that were be bouncing off of the pollen causing it to move.”  
  
    “Good job Shay”  
  
    “Can you talk louder; it’s a little hard to hear from the back.”  
  
    “Sure, if you need to move forward please do.”  
  
    “I might need to just get a hearing aid at this rate.”  
  
    The whole class started laughing and none of those who had clearly seen her spacing out mentioned anything.  
  
    Most of the day just rolled by really slowly; except for dodge ball in P.E. where she got to take out some of her frustration on the big time jocks which was always immensely entertaining even though she had to hold back some of her strength to avoid actually injuring someone.  
  
    It was right after she had taken a shower and put her shirt and jeans back on that she heard that evil growl and all the other girls started screaming. Shay knew it was a hell hound the moment she saw it but unfortunately her knife was still in her boot, on the other side of the locker room.  
  
    The only thing she had to defend herself with was the towel she had used to dry off. She had to force herself to not panic as she wound the piece of fabric up like rope. The first lunge it attempted was stopped by the towel being shoved into its jaws but the oversized wolf sunk its teeth in in anyway. Shay immediately swung it around and slammed it into the closest wall hard enough to break several ribs and stun it. The second it let go Shay wrapped the towel around its neck and pulled it tight enough to cut off the canine’s air supply. As the creature strained to get free it cut deep gashes into Shay’s chest but the effort was futile and it soon went limp.  
  
    Right around that time the police showed up in the room and she spun around and quickly blurted out the most believable lie she could.  
  
    “That was a rabid dog” She paused long enough to fake heavy breathing to make the fight more believable for regular humans “how did it get in here.”  
  
    “We don’t know yet but we need to get you to the hospital as soon as possible” one of the officers said as he grabbed the medical kit that his buddy was holding and immediately started bandaging up her wounds the best he could, obviously they been expecting injuries. She told him that she needed her boots and quickly put them on without revealing that she had a knife in there.  
  
    There was no one in the hallway because they had all been evacuated to the front of the school and the second they saw everyone started talking. She heard things like “holy s*%!”, “did she kill it?”, “Goth girl is pretty badass”, “I knew she was tough but holy crap” along with the more worrisome “how did it get in?” and “is she infected?”  
  
    Once Shay was outside she realized that probably every single type of law enforcement possible was there including an ambulance. She silently thanked ‘whatever’ that she was the only one going to the hospital, not to mention the fact that she would be out of school and finally able to get news on how Byleistr was doing.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    After a while Loki started to notice his arm (the one that had been popped out of its socket) was starting to get sore meaning drugs in his system were starting wear off. Helbindi was sure taking his time to show up and in his impatience Loki started to pace.  
  
    He had been pacing for who knows how long when Helbindi did finally showed up. Loki was a little startled because when he turned around his little brother was just standing there at the door, didn’t even say anything just had that sad look that said the world was ending. The only things that Loki really noticed was that he was wearing their mother’s pendant (the chain had been fixed) and some casual Earth clothes. Loki made his way over as quickly as possible and wrapped his arms around the slightly shorter man.  
  
    “Helbindi it’s gonna be okay, as long as I get to him I can heal Byleistr the rest of the way.”  
  
    “I know you can, that’s not the thing I’m worried about.”  
  
    Loki pulled back and saw the fear in his eyes “what do you mean?”  
  
    Helbindi pulled a large rectangular device from behind him and put it in Loki’s hands. He then pressed a button on the side and the screen came to life. Loki watched as the projected city was wracked with explosions and the people fled from an army pouring out of the sky. They were the same creatures that had captured them. But the really terrifying part was when he heard his own name; voices coming from the device claimed that he was leading the attack. It didn’t take long for him to recognize his own helmet and he looked on as the wearer was thrown from the flying craft he was piloting and onto a massive tower. Absolute panic took over when he saw Thor; the red cape was what gave it away.  
  
    “What is this?!”  
  
    “Loki, that’s the news, that’s what’s happening right now.”  
  
    Loki knew that Heimdall must have seen him and told Thor, it was the only explanation for him being on Earth. He was also able to guess that the Chitauri had studied him long enough while he was asleep to understand who he was, that they must have either created some sort of clone or someone was using magic to look like him in order to ruin his name and lead their army. But that was most definitely not their full army; he had seen their full force with his own eyes. There must be something stopping them all from coming through. The copy-cat would almost certainly come to destroy him if they won, on the other hand if they lost (which was more likely by the looks of the situation) he would run off, Thor would go looking for him and find the real Loki and blame him.  
  
    Loki was afraid of being thrown in Asgardian prison and the best way for him to avoid it would be to leave now. But the more he thought about it the more he realized that he was more afraid of losing Byleistr. He had a choice to lose his brother or be thrown in prison and he knew that he had already made his choice. Loki handed the device back to Helbindi.  
  
    “I need to get to Byleistr now, before they come after me.”  
  
    “Loki, they’ll throw you in prison if they catch you; the only chance you’ve got is to leave now.”  
  
    “I know.”  
  
    “Before you leave I want you to know that I think all of this was planned. The Jersey Devil was just the beginning. I would have been here sooner but Jerry’s daughter, Shanaya, was ambushed by a hell hound while she was at school.”  
  
    “Is she okay” Loki didn’t bother mentioning that he didn’t know Jerimiah had a daughter.  
  
    “She got scratched up a lot but really you should be asking if the dog was okay… she strangled it with a towel.”  
  
    “Good thing she can look after herself.”  
  
    “We also had to smuggle out a massive knife that had snuck into school in her boot, she was expecting it.”  
  
    “That means that probably isn’t over and... she knows something.”  
  
    “Follow me.”  
  
    Helbindi led him out the door and around a corner, down some stairs, around another corner and stopped outside a door.  
  
    “They aren’t just going to let us walk in there.”  
  
    “I’ll need time to heal him, time to improvise.”  
  
    “What are you going to do?”  
  
    “Something crazy, but it doesn’t matter because I’m going to be obliterated or thrown in jail anyway.”  
  
    Loki walked around and found a nameplate that had a piece of paper covering it which meant that he was new and they hadn’t had time to replace it. Hopefully no one would know him very well. Loki promptly went to the front desk and asked for a Dr. Beasley.  
  
    “Sorry he’s not in right now but he should be here anytime now” responded the receptionist.  
  
    It didn’t take long for the poor fellow to walk in and get suited up for the day’s work. Loki hid in an empty room and as the doctor walked in front of the door he was snatched and knocked out. He may have yelled out but no one heard him because of the silencing spell.  
  
    Loki donned his disguise and made his way back to Helbindi as quickly as he could without looking suspicious.  
  
    “Helbindi.”  
  
    The youngest turned around and Loki could see his face was streaked with tears but when he saw his brother’s incognito mode he smiled ever so slightly.  
  
    “You’re nuts.”  
  
    “I try.”  
  
    Loki suddenly realized that he was missing something and was surprised that he didn’t remember sooner.  
  
    “Where are my daggers?”  
  
    “Jerimiah took them to his house to keep them safe.”  
  
    “Don’t lose them, that set was a gift.”  
  
    “Don’t worry I promise they’ll be here when you get back… you are coming back right?” Unfortunately Loki didn’t know and he didn’t want to lie to him so he didn’t say anything. “This is the last time I’m going to see you isn’t it.”  
  
    “I sure hope not.”  
  
    Helbindi started crying again and pulled Loki into an embrace who immediately returned the hug.  
  
    “I love you brother.”  
  
    “I love you too.”  
  
    They stayed like that for a few long moments and then parted.  
  
    “Loki, I don’t know what to do.”  
  
    “I need you to go protect Jerimiah and his daughter until I leave, once I do you need to get Byleistr and get everyone out of here. You would be best off finding the most secluded place you can.”  
  
    “I’m scared.”  
  
    “Don’t be, I need my brave little warrior to stay strong.”  
  
    “I’ll do my best.”  
  
    “Now go.”  
  
    Loki watched him go until he went around the corner and then he opened the door.  
  
    “Hello doctor… Beasley.” The man monitoring Byleistr greeted him.  
  
    “Good morning doctor, I do believe it is my turn to watch over the patient.” Loki responded as believably as possible.  
  
    “That it is although you are a little late.”  
  
    “My apologies, I had some difficulties this morning.”  
  
    “That’s alright you’re here now.”  
  
    The doctor handed him a clipboard that was filled with patient’s information but Loki tossed it on the ground the second he left the room. Loki leaned over the bed that his brother laid in and took in just how much he had been injured. He was hooked up to all sorts of machines and there was a tube that went down his throat to keep it from collapsing. The former fatal injuries could still be identified by the seams that had been left by the initial healing.  
  
    Byleistr’s eyes fluttered open but he stayed calm. Instead of screaming in pain like he wanted to he simply put his trust in his little brother. He reached up and grabbed Loki’s arm for comfort. With teary eyes Loki put both of his hands over Byleistr’s wounds and started feeding them with magic. He had to take his time to avoid passing out; after all healing was one the most taxing spells.  
  
    He couldn’t feel time passing as his complete focus was numbing his mind to everything else around him but when he was finished he looked up at the clock and the longest pointer had moved halfway around its face. Byleistr carefully pulled the tube out of his throat and detached himself from the machines as Loki sat down in the nearest chair to avoid falling over.  
  
    “There’s something else going on isn’t there?” Byleistr questioned as he swung his feet over the side of the bed  
  
    “There is someone out there using my face to lead the Chitauri army against earth. It doesn’t matter who wins either way I am royally screwed. I don’t have time to escape and I won’t let you be dragged into this so I am going to leave before they find me with you.”  
  
    “Just tell me where they will take you.”  
  
    “Byleistr, you won’t be able to save me.”  
  
    “I have friends that can help.”  
  
    “I can’t drag you into this” Loki nearly shouted.  
  
    “It’s too late for that little brother and besides if they don’t know about us then they won’t be expecting a rescue.”  
  
    “Please don’t.”  
  
    “You not telling me this little detail won’t stop me. They already know you’re here and I know that for sure. I can’t stop them from taking you right now because apparently it’s too late for that. But I will not you let rot in a dungeon even if getting you out kills me. If there is anything in this universe worth dying for its family and there is no way that I am going to give up on you. If you won’t tell me I will find out some other way. I won’t be able to live with myself if I lose you again.”  
  
    “Again?”  
  
    “In the chaos of the Æsir invasion I lost track of you. It my job to watch over you and I failed. It’s my fault that Odin took you; he thought you had been abandoned because I had failed to protect you. I can’t lose you again.”  
  
    At some point Loki had started to quietly cry. Byleistr was already crying and feeling terrible.  
  
    “It’s not your fault.”  
  
    “Of course it is.”  
  
    “Lots of people died that day, it wasn’t just our family that was broken apart and it wasn’t because of you. If Laufey had not started a war then no one would have died, Jotunheim would still be the great kingdom it used to be and our family would still be together. But then again maybe the Norns meant for this to happen to make us stronger so that someday we could unite our races. That is why Odin took me; he wanted peace so that no more blood would be shed and he thought I could help someday... I guess you aren’t the only one that feels like a failure. “  
  
    “Maybe failing what is people do best.”  
  
    “No, it’s just that we remember failure more than success because pain is a stronger emotion than joy.”  
  
    There was a long silence before Byleistr finally broke it “so, are you going to tell me?”  
  
    “Yes… it looks like the Chitauri are going to lose which means that Thor will be taking me back to Asgard.”  
  
    “Then I’ll see you there, Snowflake.”


	7. Chapter 7

    The fight was a mess, everyone except Bruce was banged up to some extent, but the Avengers finally came out victorious. The only thing left was to get Loki and put him in prison. But of course nothing is ever that easy. Bruce took the team to where he had left the Trickster after throwing him around like a ragdoll but he must have still been able to get up and just completely disappeared off the radar. While the team searched the area agents on the helicarrier once again found themselves sweeping every wirelessly accessible camera in the country.  
  
    Agent Hill had her own agenda entirely. After she had found Coulson he had told her that it wasn’t Loki right before he passed out and she was determined to prove it. She first checked the camera feed from the breakout and was able to confirm whoever was framing Loki had let down her (clearly magical) disguise right before Coulson hit her with one of the stage two weapons Shield had been developing. The picture was clear enough to get a face scan. She secretly put the results into the camera sweep they were running and calibrated them to be sent to her personal device only.  
  
    Then Maria went about looking for any official records on the assumption that real Loki might not be as keen on hiding his identity thinking no one would recognize him anyway. As Loki was not a common name she ran a worldwide search. About halfway through that search she found that a Loki had been checked into St Joseph's Hospital in Syracuse, New York the previous day due to injuries from a bear attack. It was just her luck that when she checked the picture it turned out to be a perfect match.  
  
    If she had Loki here he could possibly tell them who impersonated him. Even better she could convince Nick Fury that there was something suspicious going on here and have him hold on to the Tesseract until Thor brought Loki back to the base so that they couldn’t just leave. The only thing left bothering her was the ‘two brothers’ that the records had mentioned and she didn’t plan on telling anyone about that part.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Loki went to the bathroom to wash the tear stains off his face and discard the white coat. As he made his way outside he was stopped by the nurse, Heidi.  
  
    “Hey there Loki, technically you are okay enough to go home but are you sure you don’t want to stay with your brothers?”  
  
    Loki realized that the way he had been pissed off at her before was unreasonable since she was just doing her job to the best of her abilities. It was her job to take care of the people who came in here and he understood her concern. She didn’t know about what else was going on, wouldn’t want to but she needed to understand and besides he needed a little help with something.  
  
    “I am worried about them… and I don’t want to drag them into my problems” he explained “I am in deep trouble right now and just by knowing them I could be putting them in more danger. If you care about their wellbeing then I need you to go into wherever the information on patients is stored and destroy any references there might be to them being my brothers.”  
  
    “I can do that but only if you promise to not get into any more trouble and to take care of yourself.”  
  
    “I will do my best.”  
  
    “One more thing, your cousin’s daughter wanted me to give this to you” She pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Loki “I don’t know why this is important, I don’t know who this is, she only said to not trust this woman and that her name is Lorelei.”  
  
    Loki walked a few steps while looking at the picture before he turned around “thank you.”  
  
    The trickster had to be honest with himself, he was certain that Byleistr wouldn’t be able to break him out of Asgardian prison. But there was a tiny part of his mind that held on to hope and wouldn’t let go. That same part of his mind also hoped that Thor would forgive him just like he had done so many times in the past. It hoped that Thor might consider them brothers still. In fact it hoped for a lot of things; that Odin would be lenient, his mother would listen to him, even dared hoping Balder would come back from his journey and rescue his little brother from bearing the full potential of his punishment once again. After all he did save Loki from having his head cut off after he crossed one of the dwarves.  
  
    Loki smiled as he thought about all the times that Balder had helped him. Loki was always prone to mischief and there were so many times that Balder had helped cover it up or lie about it and there were even times that he helped commit the mischief. It had taken a while for Loki to realize that the reason Balder was always there for him was because he didn’t have any really good friends like Thor did and just wanted someone to hang out with. Loki didn’t have a lot of friends either; he didn’t need them because he had his big brother. Life was actually bearable back then. And then everything changed when Balder decided to journey to the other realms in order to study their life and politics so that he could be Thor’s advisor. Loki never really understood why Balder couldn’t be king.  
  
    And then there was Bragi, his half-brother. Bragi had been the one that Loki trained with after his magic had driven the other tutors nuts. While everyone else mocked him for using what was considered a womanly trait Bragi encouraged him to meld his magical tactics with his weapons to bring his abilities up to par with the others who were stronger. After a while Loki got to be better than the others, while they had to wait for their opponents to get close Loki could take them down before they even touched him. Loki didn’t have to be strong because he was fast and accurate.  
  
    Loki had completely zoned out while thinking of the past and when someone bumped into him he realized he didn’t know where he was anymore. It didn’t’ really matter where he was as long as he was as far away from the hospital as possible.  
  
    Loki jumped about a foot in the air in surprise when something slammed into the concrete behind him. He really didn’t need to turn around to know what it was. He could already feel his chest tightening and it took all the strength he had to not cry. After all this was the first time Loki had seen Thor since he tried to kill him and his friends, tried to destroy Jotunheim, and had fallen though the void hoping he would die and be spared the depression of being all alone. Loki slowly turned around to face the golden son of Odin.  
  
    “I knew you to be many things brother, a liar, a cheat, a trickster as well as the recent revelation of you being evil and hell-bent on ruling Midgard and subjugating her people but I never would have guessed you were a coward. Never before have you feared punishment and now after your defeat you run like a timid Hábrók. What have you done to yourself Loki?”  
  
    Those words cut Loki to the core but he wouldn’t let it show. Masking his feelings was so easy in the past but after being so uncharacteristically open with his blood brothers it turned out that it was a harder now. He did still have this innate ability but he was unable stop the unevenness of his breathing.  
  
    “I had unfinished business to deal with, I was on my way back just now. I thought it would take longer for you to figure out where I was” Loki used the most monotone voice possible to keep his voice from cracking.  
  
    “What kind of unfinished business?”  
  
    Loki was reminded of the daggers Thor gave him “I was merely putting something away for safekeeping.”  
  
    “With what you have done I doubt you will ever see it again.”  
  
    “Doesn’t matter as long as no one else lays their grubby hands on them and defiles their memory with greed.”  
  
    “Sentiment.”  
  
    Loki had a feeling that Thor was using that as an insult but he didn’t quite understand _‘it must have been something the imposter had said’._  
  
    Thor had turned around was silent for a long time. Loki didn’t understand why it irritated him so much to be ignored but he wouldn’t put up with it. He took a few seconds to let his breathing even out.  
  
    “If you hate me or want me dead at least tell me instead of ignoring me you oaf” Loki blurted out seething with anger.  
  
    “You should know that when we fought each other in the past, I did so with a glimmer of hope that my brother was still in there somewhere.” Thor said as he slowly back around “that hope no longer exists to protect you. You betray me again and I will kill you.”  
  
    “Then you should end this now. Kill me before I get the chance betray you.” Loki could tell Thor had been shaken by these words and it made him feel better to be able to hurt one of the people that he had been hurt by. “But you can’t, can you? You can’t bring yourself to kill me, a frost giant, a monster because you still see me as your brother. You still see me as I once was. You can’t kill me because you still want the old Loki back. You want things to go back to the way they were and if you kill me you lose all hope for that.”  
  
    “Loki, please that’s enough.”  
  
    “No, it’s not. You only see your own pain. You don’t see how I was betrayed by the very people I used to call family! How I was abandoned by everyone I loved, by all of the people I would have died to protect!”  
  
    Tears had started to snake their way down Thor’s face because he believed that Loki had descended into madness. He now realized that the change in Loki had been brought about in part by his own actions. What he didn’t realize was that Loki had not gone mad; if anything he was becoming depressed and was simply lashing out in desperation. Thor didn’t know that Loki had been framed.  
  
    Thor wouldn’t dare say anything else until they both calmed down, he didn’t want an all-out fight to break out. He left a long silence and then changed the subject.  
  
    “I can’t take you back to Asgard yet; Maria has refused to let us leave until she has a word with us.”  
  
    “Well I suppose you can’t just let me run around without any insurance of safety since I am now the number one enemy. Where are the shackles that you intend to use on me?” Loki questioned as he held his wrists up in a sign of surrender.  
  
    Thor sighed and pulled the cuffs he had brought from the back of his belt and locked them securely around Loki’s wrists. Loki was completely compliant until he saw that Thor also intended to muzzle him. He would not be silenced just because Thor couldn’t handle the truth.  
  
    When he stepped back to get out of reach Thor lunged forward and grabbed the chain that connected the cuffs with his left hand to pull him back. Thor released the chain and immediately put his arm around Loki’s shoulders to press him against his chest and immobilize him with his arms trapped between them. Loki still pushed against him and threw his head around to keep Thor from putting the muzzle on.  
  
    Thor had to try a different tactic; he used his body to press Loki against the wall of a building behind him so that he could use his left hand to grab him by the neck to keep his head still. But unfortunately the muzzle had a piece that was meant to go in the mouth and Loki had his jaw locked shut. Thor moved his hand up to Loki’s jaw and pressed his fingers into his cheeks right where his teeth met. Eventually Loki couldn’t take the pressure anymore, he gave in and Thor immediately locked the muzzle into place.  
  
    Loki felt like he had been betrayed once again as Thor grabbed onto him and flew them to the helicarrier.


	8. Chapter 8

    Maria was at the edge of her patience when Thor finally returned with Loki. When they landed Loki wasn’t able to find his balance quick enough to keep from falling but he regained his composure and stood back up as quickly as he could. Nick Fury did believe Maria but if Thor still intended to imprison Loki after the situation had been explained the director would not stop him. Worst of all the responsibility of proving Loki’s innocence now fell on her shoulders since Thor refused to trust anything his brother might say. Aside from Steve all of the Avengers stayed unconvinced no matter how much proof she threw at them and would be no help. Anyone who said that she didn’t try the best she could to convince him was a liar. Apparently her best just wasn’t good enough; either that, or Thor’s skull was just too thick.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Loki had become furious, how dare they imprison him for the one thing he didn’t even do. Agent Hill even told them that she had evidence that he didn’t do it and they were going lock him up anyway. It would have been okay if it was for trying to destroy Jotunheim but no of course not. He would make sure they felt his anger and they would realize that it had been a mistake to take the muzzle off.  
  
    “Frigga, are you proud?”  
  
    “Loki, don’t make this worse.”  
  
    “…Of Thor, aren’t you proud that your faithful dog of a son has done his duty and brought back the traitor for his rightful punishment?” Loki snarled.  
  
    “Silence!” Odin yelled “I will not let you speak of your family like this.”  
  
    “I was never part of this family.”  
  
    “Believe what you will Loki, but I will always consider you my son and if I cannot convince you to see the wrong in what you have done I will consider it my own personal failure. Just because you no longer see us as your family does not mean I have abandoned you.”  
  
    This came as a revelation to many people and some weren’t so happy about it, mostly the people who had been tactfully cheated by the trickster. They would have been more than happy to have heard that Loki would rot in the dungeons for the rest of his life but from the sound of it that probably wasn’t going to happen. But most of all it was a surprise for Loki, after all this time of thinking that Odin hated him, had disowned him; he actually had a hard time processing it and just stood there for a while with his mouth hanging open a little bit as his anger dissipated. Odin then stood and walked down from his throne to stand in front of his adoptive son so that could speak to him alone while everyone was busy talking. As it turns out no one outside of the royal family knew what the accusations were.  
  
    “For now, my son, I regret that I must send you to the dungeons for your own safety.”  
  
    At this moment Loki remembered why he had been so angry and realized that this might be his last chance to resolve it.  
  
    “Please, I know that lying is what I do best but if you have ever had a reason to believe me then you have to hear me out when I say I did not attack the citizens of Midgard that an enchantress took the likeness of my image and framed me. If you have to imprison me at least do it for something I actually did; for trying to destroy Jotunheim.”  
  
    Odin nodded and stepped back up to his throne to address the people of Asgard.  
  
    “I hereby sentence Loki Odinson to the dungeons for his crimes against Jotunheim until further notice.”  
  
    Even as the guards took him down to the dungeons, even as they put on the collar that would block his ability to use magic Loki still felt relieved because his father had not abandoned him.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Loki was calmly reading his book when the entrance to his cell opened up and Loki recognized the person who walked in as Lorelei from the picture.  
  
    “I could have had everything, I could have had him. But no, you and your idiot brothers had to come in and ruin everything.”  
  
    Loki stood up and backed away from her when he saw that she was unsheathing her sword.  
  
    “When I impersonated you back in New York I didn’t even realize that you were Jerimiah’s cousin nor did I realize that you were with those two when I sent that Jersey devil after them, just icing in the cake I guess.”  
  
    “So it was your fault that Byleistr almost died.”  
  
    “It was your fault that he didn’t”  
  
    “Why would you do this this?”  
  
    “Because Jerimiah hurt me and the only way that I could truly get back at him was to hurt his precious family”  
  
    “That thing that attacked Shay?”  
  
    “Yup, I did that too.”  
  
    “Then why would attack New York as me if you didn’t know who I was?”  
  
    “I got a request and thought it would be fun. But the only thing that could make all of this even better would be the fact that your older brother is coming to get you and he is going to find you dead.”  
  
    Loki had started to get angry but he knew that nothing good would come out of yelling so he willed himself to calm down. He knew he was outmatched without his magic but that didn’t make him any less able to talk his way out of the situation, after all he wasn’t called silver-tongue for nothing.  
  
    It took a while for her to speak again and when she did he was ready “Are you prepared to die, insect?” Lorelei placed the tip of a deadly blade at the center of Loki’s rib cage.  
  
    “I am no insect, you on the other hand are nothing, the sands of time will inevitably erase the memory of what you are from reality, and you have already sacrificed the means to make your existence valid. You have sacrificed your own happiness just because you can’t move on.”  
  
    Lorelei realized that this had turned into a battle of words and she was more than willing to play along.  
  
    “The destruction I leave behind will be a testament to my power and that power makes me very happy.”  
  
    “The power you wield is like a drug to your psyche, you are addicted to it and in the end it will destroy you.”  
  
    “Are trying to show me the evil of my ways?” her laughter lost all control “in a hopeless effort to save yourself or perhaps even make me side with you so that you may have my power. Forget it I will make sure you and your family suffer greatly.”  
  
    “You have been hurt so many times by everyone around you; your family, your friends, even random people you met on the street. You crave for something to make it better but most of all you crave for someone to blame; someone you can take your anger out on. You want to see someone else suffer the way you did. And it would seem that I have befallen the great misfortune of being that person, of losing everything I had and all that could have been just like you…”  
  
    She started panicking _“how could he know this, I just met him, how is it even physically possible for him to know all this.”_  
  
    “But I already understood your pain before all this and because of that…”  
  
    “Enough!” She screeched as the sword she held plunged deep into Loki’s chest, it just barely missed his heart.  
  
    “I forgive you” was all he managed to choke out before he collapsed on the cell floor.  
  
    Those words ignited fury within her veins, they hit so close to home and she wished desperately for him to take them back. She had forgotten what it felt like for someone to understand her. For so long she had lived in lies and hatred that they had become a part of her and in retrospect that part of her was what ruined her relationship with Jerimiah. All it took was three little words to strip it away and leave behind that tiny altruistic part of her cold heart that had been hidden away for such a profuse amount of time. It had been so long that she became unable to understand the feelings that she now faced, and she hated it. She hated that Loki could not take those words back even if he wanted to, that his strength to do so was already gushing out of the wound in his chest as he gasped for breath. She didn’t know what else to do so she just teleported the heck out of there.  
  
    On a side note, in her anger Lorelei had completely forgotten that Loki could just use magic to heal the wound even though it would take a while.  
  
 _“People are so easy to manipulate.”_  
  
    Of course he didn’t truly forgive her, but he intended to be merciful and end her suffering quickly, once he got out of this damn prison anyway. _“Oh wait… she left the shield off.”_  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Helbindi sat thinking in silence for a long time after Byleistr left to rescue Loki but eventually he got impatient and pulled out all of his artwork. There was a bunch of unfinished pieces and he intended to work on them. He bounced from one piece to another back the first then started an entirely new one, went to another one and then back to the first all within the first hour. Then he ran out of inspiration and started pacing. Suddenly he realized how quiet it was and pulled out his iPod and hit play without bothering to check what the song was.  
  


 _Feeling my way through the darkness_  
 _Guided by a beating heart_  
 _I can't tell where the journey will end_  
 _But I know where to start_  
  
  
 _They tell me I'm too young to understand_  
 _They say I'm caught up in a dream_  
 _Well life will pass me by if I don't open up my eyes_  
 _Well that's fine by me_  
  
  
    He laid down on one of Jerry’s bean bag chairs and tapped his heels on the floor to the song. Then he got tired of that and looked through Jerry’s video games and found that he had Final Fantasy X and put it into the PS2. But while it was starting up he spotted Loki’s daggers lying on a piece of cloth in the kitchen, they sure were shiny after Jerry had cleaned them off.  
  
  He picked up the biggest one and turned it over and back over and over again. The emeralds gleamed in the sunlight and if he focused on the reflection just right he could make out the shape of the window. He looked it over for about ten minutes studying every facet and groove in fascination until he carefully put it back down and picked up one of the smaller ones. Helbindi wondered who had given these to Loki; they were so well crafted that they must have been made by dwarves. They were a grumpy race but the weapons they made were unparalleled.  
  
    Helbindi was so caught up in the design that he jumped when his phone started ringing. He carefully laid the dagger back down and checked the number. He stood there in shock as he checked the number again and again just to make sure.  
  
    Then he finally answered “Mother?”  
  
    “Yes dear, it’s me.”  
  
    “I thought you were dead” Helbindi whimpered.  
  
    “I know you’re confused but it’s alright, everything is okay now.”  
  
    “Am I going to get to see you soon?”  
  
    “Yes but first I need to know where you are.”  
  
    “I’m at Jerimiah’s house.”  
  
    “I’ll be there soon.”  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Byleistr was able to get to the dungeons without too much difficulty in his guard disguise and figured he would just relieve one of the guards in front of the prison, knock the other one out and get Loki. There one little problem though; they were both dead and the doors were open. He sprinted through the doors and found Loki lying motionless in the middle of an open cell. As he reached down to check for a pulse Loki’s eyes flew open and he reached up and grabbed him around the neck thinking he was actually a guard.  
  
    “Byleistr” Loki breathed as he relaxed and let go of him “I’m sorry, you caught me off guard.”  
  
    “I caught you off _guard_?” Byleistr motioned to his disguise.  
  
    “That is a terrible pun.”  
  
“Are you alright?”  
  
“I will be. I just need some time to heal the wound.”  
  
    “What happened?”  
  
“The woman named Lorelei came to kill me, as you can see she wasn’t able to finish the job.”  
  
    “Lorelei is Jerry’s ex, I knew she was mentally unstable but I didn’t expect her to be capable of murder. There’s one other thing bothering me.”  
  
    “What is it?”  
  
    “I may have left Helbindi alone at Jerry’s house and she knows where he lives.”  
  
    “Then let’s get back before something happens.”  
  
    “Will you be able to walk?”  
  
    “Probably not but I’ll have to.”  
  
    “I can carry you.”  
  
    “That would work.”  
  
    Byleistr carefully picked Loki up and stealthily made his way out of the dungeon and took advantage of the darkness to make it back to the spaceship he had rented (because on most planets renting a spaceship was pretty common). Byleistr had a laser cutter on board and used it to cut off the collar that bound Loki’s magic.


	9. Chapter 9

    There are certain signs that can tell you when something is terribly wrong if you pay attention. For example if the front door happens to be hanging wide open. Maybe you don’t hear the dog barking as you walk up the driveway or you don’t hear anything but your own breathing. If all the lights in the house are off even though it’s getting dark outside.  
  
    When Byleistr and Loki walked through the front door it slammed shut behind them like the beginning to a bad horror movie. As they moved through the house Loki spotted his freshly cleaned daggers and deftly picked up the largest one with his left hand. The two brothers fearlessly walked into the moonlight living room only to be stopped in their tracks to find Helbindi with their supposedly dead mother.  
  
    “Don’t worry” the youngest said calmly “Everything is going to be okay now.”  
  
    “Helbindi get away from her!” Byleistr shouted as he stepped forward.  
  
    “Why would I do that?”  
  
    “That’s not your mother! There was too much blood, she couldn’t have survived that!”  
  
    “I know.” Helbindi’s eyes flashed blue as he lunged at his oldest brother and pinned him against the wall. Byleistr didn’t fight back as hard as he could have for fear of hurting him.  
  
    Loki stood motionless like a cougar preparing to pounce. His clever mind quickly analyzed the situation and swiftly moved the dagger to his other hand just as a ‘hidden’ attacker moved in from his right. He barely even looked as his blade sliced through the throat of the person who thought he had gotten the jump on him.  
  
    “I seem to have under estimated you once again trickster.”  
  
    “Well Lorelei I sorely hope you have learned your lesson and realize that you are doomed to fail. I would ask that you discard your disguise and cease to torment my brother with it.”  
  
    “Are you sure, don’t you want to memorize what your mother looked like.”  
  
    “Not while I know that your corrupt mind is behind the illusion.”  
  
    “I’m not the only one who has been corrupted. Did you tell your brother how you tried to destroy Jotunheim and all of her people?”  
  
    “Loki, please tell me she’s lying” Byleistr pleaded.  
  
    “Now you know what kind of a monster I truly am.”  
  
    “But that’s not all.” Lorelei continued as she finally shrugged off the disguise “Remember when you murdered Laufey, I suppose you didn’t know that he was your true father.”  
  
     “No” Loki backed up against the wall and made himself as small as he could.  
  
    “Was it worth it, did you get Odin’s love like you wanted.”  
  
     Lorelei was advancing on Loki and he turned is head to hide his face.  
  
    She was right above him when she whispered in his ear “are you proud of yourself?”  
  
    Loki took his knife and sank the blade into her cold careless heart.  
  
    “At least I have finally done something right” Loki hissed back as she stumbled and fell to the floor.  
  
    “You are going to regret that” she choked out.  
  
    The brainwashed Helbindi tossed Byleistr through the window and tried to take down Loki but just wound up with an elbow to the head hard enough to knock him out.  
  
    Loki grabbed the rest of his daggers and started to walk out of the house; he couldn’t face his brothers now that they knew truth. They would probably want him dead anyway. But Byleistr saw him walking out of the house and refused to let him go so easily.  
  
    “Where the hell do you think you’re going?”  
  
    “As far away as possible. I’ve already done enough and I don’t want to hurt you anymore.”  
  
    Byleistr move to stand in front of him on the porch.  
  
    “Don’t you dare; I will not lose you again”  
  
    “You should kill me after everything I’ve done.”  
  
    “If I do that then how am I going to forgive you?”  
  
    “Why would you want to?”  
  
    “Loki, it does hurt that you would do something like that but I find it hard to blame you. It’s not your fault; you were raised to think that the Jotuns were monsters. It would make sense that you would think that the universe would be better off without them. But you were wrong and you know that now. Now you think that my life will be better off without you… and you are wrong again. We need you no matter how broken you are and we will do our best to try and fix you.”  
  
    Loki was truly surprised at how much he had been crying lately.  
  
    “And what will Helbindi think.”  
  
    “If doesn’t remember this when the brainwashing wears off then we don’t need to tell him.”  
  
    “You would lie to him.”  
  
    “I only do it to try to protect him. With the way he is I don’t he will able to handle knowing just how much pain and suffering is in this universe without becoming depressed. If he stops believing that all people have good in them then he will never be the same compassionate brother that I know.  
  
    “We should go and make sure he’s okay.”  
  
.    .    .  
  
    As Lorelei laid there dying she decided that in retrospect she should have not gotten so close to the god of lies. Failure was not an option to her. She knew that this plan was a risk and that was why she had placed a small bomb in the house. Loki and Byleistr were already outside but she could still blow their little brother to bits. With her oxygen deprived fingers she pulled the remote trigger out of her pocket and pressed the button.  
  
    The explosion ripped her apart and was loud enough to be heard for miles in the cold night air.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    The fire department and ambulance showed up about an hour before Jerry and Shay drove in. By that time the paramedics had found what was left of Lorelei’s and her associate’s body and were still looking for Helbindi’s. Byleistr hadn’t stopped crying since the explosion and Loki had fallen into a daze that no one could snap him out of. Jerry sat down between the two and wrapped his arms around them.  
  
    Their world was falling apart and all they could do was sit and watch in despair. Byleistr was obviously worse off. It had been his duty to protect Helbindi, just as he had done since the day his little brother was born. Now he had failed, he had failed Helbindi, he had failed his mother and he had failed himself. In truth the need to protect his little brother was the only thing that had kept him going since he found out that his mother was dead. Now he had nothing left and wanted to die.  
  
   _‘Of all the people here’_ Loki thought grimly _‘he was the one who deserved it the least. I should have been the one who died in there. He was so innocent and compassionate why did it have be him? The Norns truly are cruel to let me live while he perishes… There probably won’t be anything left to bury.’_  
  
    Shay refused to sit still; she wandered to and fro and around the house and little ways into the forest and then back.  
  
     After a while Loki saw the Bifrost open up nearby.  He waited patiently for Thor to show up only to find that he was preceded by Balder and Bragi. Sure he was happy to see them but it was like a splash of happiness against a wave of depression. When they reached Loki Balder and Bragi shoved Thor in front of them and looked at him expectantly.  
  
    Thor swallowed and his eyes fell to the ground “Loki, I am so sorry for treating you the way I did. I was a fool to not listen to Maria. Had I not been so arrogant I could have helped you prevent this. Can you ever forgive me?”  
  
    Only then did Loki look up “Too little too late, leave me alone.” Loki went back to looking at ground as if it had personally offended him.  
  
    Thor made a pained noise and walked away. The other two sat down next to Loki, Bragi held his hand and Balder put his arm around his shoulder. Under any other circumstances Loki would have introduced everybody but at the moment he barely had the strength to even speak another word without breaking down.  
  
    Shay went and sat down by the tree in front of the house but she didn’t know what to do so she looked around and studied everything in detail. Thankfully for her the sadness of all this had not set in yet. Her attention was suddenly drawn by something under the broke down truck in the front yard. The truck was over a ditch so the object under it could only be seen from a certain angle and Shay had sat down in just the right spot.  
  
    She jumped up and ran over the side of the truck to get a closer look. The second she got a closer look at the object she knew it was Helbindi and he was still breathing.  
  
    “I found him! I need help, he’s still alive!”  
  
     Within seconds everyone in the area was next to the truck. Jerimiah and Bragi got there first and were the ones to crawl underneath and pull him out. The paramedics were keeping everyone else back until Helbindi was pulled out and they could treat his injuries. Oddly enough there wasn’t anything to treat, he was unconscious and his clothes were mostly destroyed but there wasn’t a single scratch on him.  
  
    One of the paramedics addressed Byleistr “I thought you said that he was in the living room when the explosion was set off.”  
  
    “He was, I don’t know how this is possible but I don’t even want to question it. All that matters is that he is alive.”  
  
    “I think I know why” Balder announced as knelt down beside the paramedic “where did he get that amulet?”  
  
    “It was our mother’s.”  
  
    “I don’t know how she came across it but that is one of the three amulets of protection made by the dwarves and enchanted by the elves. They were made so long ago that no one knows who they were made for or where they even were. Well until now, the other two are still missing though.”  
  
    “I told you she was watching over you” Loki whispered.  
  
    “We should bring him back to Asgard, who knows what the brainwashing did to him and there could still be traces of it left.”  
  
    “Balder” Loki pleaded “I want to talk to him before they put me back in jail.”  
  
    “Don’t worry father isn’t going to put you back in jail and even if he were I wouldn’t let him.”  
  
    “Thank you.”  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Helbindi woke up in a golden room and found that both of his hands were held by his brothers who had fallen asleep on either side of the bed. He was able to easily wake up Loki but Byleistr would not be roused.  
  
    Odin had been sitting on a chair at the end of the room and now he walked over to the side of the bed.  
  
    “Do you feel okay?”  
  
    “Yea, are you Odin, Loki’s father?”  
  
    “I am.”  
  
    “Does that make you my father too? I’ve never had one before.”  
  
    “If you want me to be then yes.”  
  
    Helbindi let go of Loki’s hand and put his arm around Odin’s shoulder who returned the half-hug.  
  
    “Hi dad, nice to meet you.”  
  
    Loki smiled behind him knowing that everything was going to work out just fine.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    With the guidance of Heimdal Loki was able to find the forsaken planet where he fell from the void. Luckily the Chitauri army abandoned the planet after their failed invasion. He was able to retrieve the artwork Helbindi left behind. Helbindi was so thankful that the pieces that were in the house during the explosion had survived because he put then in a solid chest before Lorelei showed up. Being able to get everything back would definitely cheer him up considering how much he treasured every piece he finished. Loki couldn’t wait to see Helbindi’s reaction when gave them back to him.  
  
    Once he found all of the art he retrieved the portal for safekeeping as well as his mother’s notes. Anything else of value was also brought back as well. After Loki went through all of the main caves he spotted a small side passage and made a chilling discovery. He found his mother’s corpse. Finding her was nerve-wracking enough but it looked like she could have died mere days ago. There were no bacteria on this planet to put her into the soil and the moist cave kept her skin from drying out.  
    He knew he couldn’t leave her there; she deserved a proper funeral. But he couldn’t find the courage to bring her out. Loki decided to call for a couple of his father’s guards to bring her to Asgard. He only hoped that she would have approved being laid to rest there.  
  
    It was hard on them knowing that their mother’s body was probably rotting somewhere on that blasted planet. The funeral turned out to be the perfect closure possible for the three brothers. They cried their hearts out but at least they now knew for sure that Farbauti’s spirit could finally be at peace with her body laid to rest.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Technically the story ends with the last chapter but I have added a few scenes to provide a glimpse into their new life in Asgard as well as the potential for a new story because I feel a little unfulfilled letting it end here.

    Balder cut his exploration of the nine realms short saying that he had seen everything he needed to and that he wanted to get to know his new brothers. Eventually Loki forgave Thor but it took a long time for Loki to trust him again. Frigga realized that keeping them out of trouble was far more difficult with Helbindi constantly winding everyone up with his antics. He came up with a lot of ideas as well as getting a lot from the internet and soon as he suggested it the others decided that it must be done.  
  
    The new rules that had to be made were endless: No skateboarding in the palace, no lighting steel wool on fire in the hallways, any animals that weigh more than Volstagg are not allowed inside, just because small animals are allowed inside does not mean you can throw them at your brother, ‘because I want one’ is not an acceptable explanation for getting a dragon, you cannot paint on Odin’s face while he is napping, do not step foot inside the weapons vault, when I say ‘do not step foot inside the weapons vault’ it is not acceptable to get on your knees and crawl in there with your feet in the air.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Helbindi was an extremely nice person although he said that he had a hard time taking to groups of people he didn’t know he was excellent at making friends. Each time he made a new friend he had to introduce that person to Loki and in turn he suddenly for the first time had a bunch of friends. Loki wound up becoming a lot nicer in general and the mischief he made was a lot less hurtful. The public opinion of the trickster was far less negative especially when Helbindi encouraged him to be nice to people regardless of their opinion of him, though it did take some time.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Helbindi rounded a corner and saw Odin’s red cape fluttering behind him as walked through the hallways. He padded up behind him and grabbed his cape. He let the fabric move through his fingers and right before the end he held on tight and let it pull him to the floor like a wooden plank.  
  
    Odin promptly turned around when he felt the tug on his cape “what are you doing?”  
  
    Helbindi looked up from his spot on the floor “hi.”  
  
    Odin rolled his one good eye, turned back around and kept walking dragging Helbindi along the floor behind him in the process.  
  
    Helbindi kicked his feet up in the air “weeeee.”  
  
.    .    .  
  
    After a while Tony Stark able to make an electronic eye for Odin that could be taken out. He certainly was happy to be able to see in 3D again. After all of Helbindi’s smart-ass pranks Odin had come up with an idea of his own.  
  
One day Helbindi decided to sit next to Odin during supper and the second he looked away Odin popped his eye out and put it in his drink. Helbindi jumped three feet in the air and fell off of his seat when he found an eyeball staring back at him from his drink.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    Helbindi had a bit of an issue finding way to entertain himself. Sure he did paintings, sculptures, carvings as well as puzzles, board games, browse ifunny on his phone, watch youtube and tons of other things. Unfortunately sometimes he did not want to do any of these things and he missed watching movies and playing video games.  
  
    He eventually decided to put up a flat screen TV in his room and had Tony set up the wiring and speakers. Once everything was set up he declared that every second Friday of every other month was now ‘Bad Science Fiction Movie Friday’. The first one they watched was Sharknado and when Helbindi found out that there was going to be a second one he became unreasonably exited.  
  
    Helbindi also managed to get everyone obsessed with Supernatural, Doctor Who, Stargate and Firefly.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    One day while Helbindi was visiting Jerimiah he met a really nice woman named Darcy. She was creative and funny and really into science. Helbindi really liked her and each day he told himself that he was going to ask her on a date but every time he saw her the words stuck in his throat. Darcy usually made plans to go do stuff and of course Helbindi went along excitedly but never had the nerve to plan something himself. Whenever she invited friends Helbindi stayed off to the side and listened quietly occasionally making a joke or two.  
  
    Eventually she had to leave so that she could get back to her research. Helbindi was going to ask for her number so that they could stay in touch but he never did. When she was about to drive away he knew that this was his last chance to tell her how he felt and he let it slip away. He lost his chance because he was so afraid of rejection; he always had been even when it was just a friend. He watched sadly as her car disappeared into the distance.  
  
.    .    .  
  
    It took a lot of time and traveling but Loki was eventually able to discover the final resting place of the other two amulets of protection. They were on a planet outside of the nine realms that was so foreign and the wildlife so dangerous that just standing on the planet for a mere minute would mean death for any mortal. Loki intended to retrieve them no matter how much time it took to prepare.


End file.
